Hispaniola (Isla de Santo Domingo), Greater Antilles December 1993. This low-oblique, north-looking photograph provides an excellent view of Hispaniola—discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1492—the second-largest island in the West Indies. Situated between Cuba and Puerto Rico (to the west and east, respectively) and the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea (to the north and south, respectively), Hispaniola covers 29 530 square miles (76 480 square kilometers). Two main features of this mountainous terrain are the Cordillera Central, the backbone of Hispaniola, and the Enriquillo, a cul-de-sac depression. The Cordillera Central, formed from a checkered array of volcanic, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks, presents a maze of peaks and ridges with flat-bottomed intermontane valleys. Its highest peak rises 10 417 feet (3177 meters) in the east-central part of the island. The Enriquillo, a rift valley that was once a maritime strait, has some interior dry surface below sea level that is covered by large salt lakes such as Lago de Enriquillo and Etang-Saumâtre. The first New World settlement was established in 1493 near the modern city of Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, on the north coast. With the island’s subtropical climate and abundant year-round rainfall, agriculture (coffee, cocoa, and sugarcane) flourishes.. Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration - NASA/JPL/NIMA

Lake Enriquillo, Dominican Republic September 1993. The only saltwater lake in the world inhabited by crocodiles, Lake Enriquillo can be seen in this near-nadir looking view. Lake Enriquillo is located in a rift valley that extends 79 miles (127 km) from Port-au-Prince Bay in Haiti in the west (not visible on the image) to near Neiba Bay in the Dominican Republic in the east (not visible on the image). The rift valley, a former marine strait, is 9 to 12 miles (15-20 km) wide. Known as the Cul-de-Sac Depression in Haiti and the Hoya de Enriquillo in the Dominican Republic, parts of the rift valley are below sea level and are covered by large salt lakes. Lake Enriquillo covers an area of 102 sq. miles (265 sq. km) and is the lowest point in the Caribbean falling 144 feet (44 meters) below sea level. Its drainage basin includes ten minor river systems. The rivers that rise in the Neiba Mountains to the north (lower center and lower right of the image) are perennial. Those rivers that rise in the Baoruco Mountains to the south (upper center and upper left of the image) are intermittent. Lake Enriquillo has no outlet. The lake’s water level varies because of the high evaporation rate. Earthquakes in the region are common. Just above the right center of the image, the other salt lake in the rift valley, Etang Suamatre located in the country of Haiti, is visible.. Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration - NASA/JPL/NIMA

Enriquillo Plain, Dominican Republic September 1993. This near-nadir view shows the eastern portion of a rift valley that extends 79 miles (127 km) from Port-au-Prince in Haiti (not visible on the image) to Neiba Bay (left center of the image) in the Dominican Republic. The rift valley, a former marine strait, is referred to as the Hoya de Enriquillo in the Dominican Republic and the Cul-de-Sac Depression in Haiti. This portion of the rift valley in the Dominican Republic is 12 miles (20 km) wide. Rincon Lake, a shallow salt lake, is discernible near the center of the image. Agriculture is prominent on the valley floor. The city of Barahona is discernible on the south shore of Neiba Bay near the left center of the view. Over the last decade or so, tourism has become a major industry in the region. The long runway of the Barahona Airport is also visible just to the southwest of the city. Scattered clouds cover the Baoruco Mountains to the south (upper portion of the image) of the Hoya de Enriquillo.. Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration - NASA/JPL/NIMA

Tropical Storm Jeanne briefly reached hurricane strength as it passed over the Dominican Republic on September 16, 2004. The storm had previously dumped up to 23 inches of rain on Puerto Rico, triggering floods which resulted in at least two deaths, according to the Associated Press. This Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer ( MODIS ) image was captured by NASAs Aqua satellite at 17:55 UTC, 1:55 p.m. in the Dominican Republic, on September 16 while Jeanne remained a hurricane. At the time, the storm had sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour (75 mph) with stronger gusts, and was moving west at 11 km/hr (7 mph). Jeanne degraded into a tropical storm after its encounter with the island of Hispaniola, but was expected to return to hurricane strength as it moved back over open waters. The National Hurricane Center expects the storm to move northwest over the southern Atlantic coast of the United States in the next week. Jeanne is the tenth tropical storm of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. Source: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC